Five Minutes
by la lisboa
Summary: I was his parent for five minutes/And I was yours for five minutes, too. A series of vignettes featuring missing moments between Emma and David in season 2 as they get to know each other and learn to be a family. Final set of vignettes about Neal are now up.
1. Baby Steps

__**Disclaimer:** Nothing you recognize belongs to me!

**A/N:** I felt the need to write some Emma/David scenes; this was the result. These are meant to take place after Emma's return to Storybrooke, missing moments added to canon. I hope you enjoy!

Thanks to Melissa for betaing, congrats on avoiding crazy hair.

* * *

_i._

She hears the knock at the door just as she's finished putting her clothes away. "Come in," Emma calls.

The door opens, and to her surprise, David is there. "Henry's downstairs," he supplies, correctly interpreting the questioning look on her face. "With your – with Mary Margaret."

Emma bites her lip, all too aware of what he almost said. She's been alone with Mary Margaret for weeks now, and spent even more time with her before that, and while she knows that Mary Margaret is her mother, she hasn't completely come to terms with it. She's even less sure about the man in front of her.

She's barely spent any time with David. The awkwardness of the affair, and then Mary Margaret's time in jail, and David not believing in her innocence – she's spent so much time thinking of David as the other, the betrayer, even. She's been on Mary Margaret's side from the beginning, and her closeness to Mary Margaret in fairy tale land has only further alienated her from her father. She watches him enter the room slowly, tentatively, and she wonders if he isn't struck by the same fear, that they will never have a connection between father and daughter like the one she has with her mother.

"How are you doing?" he asks.

"I'm – fine," Emma answers. "It's good to be back."

David nods. "I'm glad you made it back safely. I – it's good to see you again."

"You, too," Emma replies. She shifts uncomfortably, wondering what else to say. David still feels like a stranger to her. "Thank you for taking care of my son."

"Of course," he says. "Henry's family."

It comes so easily to him, accepting Henry as part of his family – their family. And Henry was perfectly happy to call David "Grandpa" from the moment the curse broke; he's probably downstairs calling Mary Margaret "Grandma" right now. She can't even call Mary Margaret "Mom," but she knows Mary Margaret would introduce her as her daughter in a heartbeat. Everyone else has accepted it, they've all moved on, are ready to embrace the future, but she's still holding back, reserved, walls up.

"Right," she says finally. "Family."

To her surprise, David steps closer. "Emma, I – I know this may feel strange for awhile, but I'm hoping that it'll get better with time. I know what it's like to be thrust into a world where you feel like you don't belong." She nods, remembering his story from Henry's book, waiting for him to continue. "Things must feel overwhelming right now. You just got back from our – the fairy tale – world, and you're suddenly surrounded by family. It's a lot. And I just wanted to say that it's okay if you aren't quite comfortable with everything yet. Take your time." He pauses and then adds, "I won't be offended if you don't call me 'Dad.'"

"I – thank you," she replies. She doesn't know what else to say.

He smiles, sensing she still needs time to process. He begins to retreat from the room. "Anyway, that's all I wanted to say. And…good night."

Emma smiles back. "Good night."

It's not much, but it feels like a start.

_ii._

On a night like tonight, not even hot chocolate with cinnamon can make her feel better.

She can't get the look of devastation on Henry's face when she told him about Archie off her mind. What's more, she can't forget the look of utter shock and betrayal when she told him of Regina's involvement. Henry's barely spoken five words to her or anyone else since hearing the news. She knows how much Archie meant to him, knows that he was Henry's confidant, even though he didn't believe Henry until the curse was broken. This is Henry's first real experience with death, and the worst part is, it came at the hands of someone whom he once trusted and loved.

"Hey."

Emma looks up to see David entering the kitchen. "Hey." She glances behind him, but there's no one else there. "Where's Mary Margaret?"

"She's with Marco," David explains. "You know that he was – of course you do."

It's interesting, Emma reflects, the contrast between her parents. Mary Margaret always explained everything to her, sometimes to the point of annoyance, as though she couldn't trust Emma to figure things out for herself. Maternal instinct, maybe. But David is different. He doesn't try to over-explain any of the stories, like he takes for granted that she knows them all already, both the versions she grew up with and the ones she's coming to recognize as being real life. She wonders if it's because he doesn't know how to explain it.

"His conscience," Emma says. "Right." She looks back at her mug, unsure what else to say. She's aware of the fact that this could be the perfect time for an I-told-you-so, for David to point out that he and Mary Margaret had been right about Regina all along, and maybe she should have listened more to her parents.

But David doesn't reprimand her. Instead he sits down next to her at the table and waits for her to speak.

"I was so sure she was innocent," Emma says finally. It's not her pride that's hurt, not really. She's been wrong about people before. It's just that this time, she wanted so badly to believe that Regina had changed, that she wanted to be good, that she couldn't have hurt Archie. But Regina has failed her. It's her heart that's heavy tonight.

"It's an understandable mistake to make."

Emma meets David's eyes. "Is it? After everything she's done? After she's tried to kill you, and Henry, and Mary Margaret, and me _how_ many times? And I believed that she wouldn't kill Archie?"

She sees David's hand twitch, but he doesn't reach out to touch her just yet, and she's grateful for his restraint. "Sometimes you just want to see the good in people." Emma throws him a skeptical look, so he continues, "Your mother was the same way. No matter how many times Regina tried to kill her, when we finally captured her, back in our land, and she was about to be executed, your mother stopped the execution. She truly believed, until the very end, that Regina could be good."

"What changed her mind?" Emma asks.

David strokes his chin thoughtfully. "You know, I'm not sure anything ever did. I think there's still a part of her, deep down, that continues to believe that Regina can change for the better." He smiles. "And I see that part in you."

"But we were wrong," Emma mutters. "Regina hasn't changed."

David reaches out, and this time he does take her hand.

"Yet."

_iii._

She finds the baby blanket in one of the drawers. She wonders how it got there, before realizing David must have moved it when he'd taken over her room. Perhaps he had wanted to keep it in a safe place for her. Or maybe the memories it brought him were too painful. Emma can understand that. She still remembers what it felt like, standing in her ruined nursery. She remembers how it felt, thinking that the last time she'd been there, she'd been wrapped in this blanket.

"I couldn't believe you still had that."

Emma jumps, not realizing that David is standing behind her. She wonders how long he's been there. "Yeah," she replies. "It was kind of the only thing I had from my parents, the only clue I had to go on." She laughs nervously. "It's also the only reason anyone knew my name."

David steps closer and holds his hand out. "May I?" Emma hands the blanket to him, and she watches as he unfolds it. He runs his fingers over the stitching and Emma wonders what he's thinking, remembering, as he holds it. Does he remember watching his wife sew the blanket? Or maybe – Emma swallows hard – maybe he's remembering what it was like to hold her in it.

"You were so tiny," David murmurs. Emma looks down. She can hear the emotion in his voice, and she doesn't want to see her father cry. "You didn't make a sound, not a single one the entire time."

"What – what happened?" Emma asks. She knows the details, has read the story, but she wants to hear it from him. Her first moments with her father, as he remembers them.

"You were born early," David begins quietly. "We thought there would be time – your mother was supposed to go with you. We never wanted you to be alone. And when she suggested that I put you in the wardrobe by yourself, I thought she was crazy." He clears his throat."But we wanted to give you your best chance. So I took you to the wardrobe, fought off some of Regina's men, and placed you inside it. I had no idea if it would work, but when the guards opened the wardrobe, you were gone."

Emma nods, thinking about his words. She knows what he's left out – how he could hear her mother's cries of agony the entire time; how the guards wounded him as he fought them, always shielding her from harm; how he had almost died trying to save her. It's this last part that gets her, because she knows what he sacrificed to bring her here. He spent twenty-eight years in a coma to protect her.

"Thank you," she says finally. She looks up, despite the tears in her eyes. "I should thank you for saving me – everyone. Without you, there would have been no savior."

"No," David replies, and she can see him blinking back tears as well. "There would have been no savior without _you_."

* * *

**A/N:** Thanks for reading! I do plan on writing more vignettes and continuing this story as the season progresses. If you read **Family Portrait **(the Mary-Margaret/Emma equivalent of this), you'll know that the missing moment vignettes are all canon compliant. I have an idea for one more vignette, but if you have any ideas for more Emma/David moments, please let me know! I would love to hear them. Enjoy the episode tomorrow and in the meantime, how about a nice review to make my night?


	2. Together Again

**Disclaimer: **Nothing you recognize from the show belongs to me!

**A/N:** I'm so thrilled that so many people are interested in reading my Emma/David scenes. I really do enjoy writing them. Here are two more that have been in my head for awhile. Any mistakes you see are mine, as these vignettes weren't beta'd. I wanted to get these up before the episode tonight, so we can consolidate our feels to one day.

* * *

_i._

It's the flickering light that wakes her. Emma blinks, confused, wondering what the light source is. She sits up, careful not to disturb Henry, and creeps toward the door, imagining someone has left a candle burning.

A candle _is _burning, but it's not alone. David is sitting at the kitchen table, staring at the candle as thought transfixed by the flame. Emma backs away slowly, not wanting to startle him, but David sees her shadow moving. He smiles.

"I'm sorry," he whispers. "Did I wake you?"

"No," Emma lies. She comes closer, keeping her voice low so they don't wake anyone else. She waits to David to say something else, but his attention has turned back to the flame. She watches him, wondering what he finds so fascinating about the fire, and why he has chosen the middle of the night to be fascinated.

But when she sees the pain in his face, she realizes that this isn't about the candle at all. Her heart lurches as she thinks back to what Mary Margaret told her about the burning room, and the nightmares that followed a sleeping curse…

"Are you okay?" Emma asks softly. She sits down at the table next to him, and he looks up to meet her eye. She opens her mouth to say that she knows about the nightmares, but the words won't come out. She doesn't want to embarrass him. Emma realizes that this should be Mary Margaret sitting with him, not her, and Mary Margaret's absence is telling. David wants to hide this weakness from her, from everyone.

"You know," he says finally. It's not a question.

"About the nightmares?" Emma clarifies. David nods. "Yeah, Mary Margaret told me."

David nods again and looks back at the flame. Emma bites her lip, unsure how to help. She shifts uncomfortably, aware of the fact she has nothing to say. She doesn't know if he wants comfort, or silence, or to just be alone. Emma is about to push her chair back when she thinks better of it. Leaving him alone would be the easy thing. She wants to try something new.

"Mary Margaret says you can make them go away," she offers. "She had to drug herself with poppy flowers to enter that burning room again."

David glances up at her. "Really?"

"Yeah," Emma confirms. "I'm sure that you could ask her how she does it – if you wanted to, that is," she adds quickly. She wonders again why he's keeping this from Mary Margaret.

"Did she tell you about the candles?" David asks after a moment. Emma shakes her head. "Whenever she had nightmares, I would light a candle for her. And we'd sit together, talk sometimes, but mostly sit in silence, watching the candle burn. It was like a light of hope in a world of darkness."

Emma exhales. She tries not to imagine the private lives of her parents, but she can't help thinking in that moment that they are the definition of romantic. "I'm sure she would want to light a candle for you, too," Emma says.

"I'm sure you're right," David replies. "But I don't want to bother her with this. It would bring back too many memories."

"She's stronger than that," Emma tells him, and she can't help feeling a sense of pride. Her mother is strong.

David finally smiles. "You're right," he says again. "Next time." He stands up and carries the candle over to the counter. Emma follows him. "You know," David begins as he cups his hand around the flame, preparing to blow it out, "this sleeping curse thing is kind of a family tradition now. You're sort of missing out."

The flame goes out, casting them into darkness, but Emma knows he saw the horrified look on her face as she hisses, "Absolutely not."

_ii._

Emma sighs and throws another jacket into her bag before zipping it shut. She's glad that Mary Margaret has taken Henry to Granny's for dinner because she has turned the room into a disaster zone. Despite the fact she used to move around a lot, she hates packing. Especially for trips she doesn't want to take.

The knock on the door startles her. Emma looks up to see David leaning against the frame. "Need help?" he asks.

Emma shakes her head. "No, I'm done."

David extends his hand. "Here. I'll take the bag downstairs for you."

"Thanks," Emma says, handing the bag to him. She follows David downstairs and he stows the bag in a corner. As Emma watches him, a sad smile crosses her face. A few weeks ago, she could never have imagined living with her parents and son in Mary Margaret's tiny home. Now she can't imagine leaving.

"It's going to be okay, you know," David says softly. He reaches out and rests his hand on her shoulder. "You'll be back before you know it."

"I know," Emma replies, with a smile that doesn't reach her eyes. She sighs. "It's just…" She trails off, unsure how to put the emotions welling in her chest into words. There's so much uncertainty. Going into the outside world, with Mr. Gold – she doesn't relish the role of being his keeper. She feels powerless, at his mercy. She's doing this because she has no choice.

And then there's the other part of her, the one that's scared of leaving her parents alone in Storybrooke with Cora. She's seen what her mother can do, but the thought of them fighting Cora without her makes her uneasy. She knows it's silly because they are much better fighters than her anyway, but she can't help the sinking feeling of dread that things won't be the same when she comes back. That somehow, everything will have changed for the worse.

"We're going to be fine," David assures her, correctly interpreting her silence. "We can handle Cora. Nothing is going to happen. And Henry will be with you, so you won't have to worry about me corrupting him with my less-than-stellar parenting skills. Or about your mother and me scarring him for life if he comes home early from school one day."

Emma laughs at David's weak attempt at humor, as she remembers her embarrassment at finding her parents in bed together the day after returning to Storybrooke. But her smile fades when she thinks about what's coming, and how she'd willingly see her parents naked in bed a hundred times to avoid losing one or both of them to Cora's dark magic.

"You have the advantage," David tries again. "Mr. Gold has never been to the outside world. You have. You are in control, just remember that. He's going to be dependent on you, even if he won't admit it. He wouldn't be making you come on this trip with him if he could do it alone. He needs you, so he has to be nice."

"I don't want him to need me," Emma replies. "I don't like that he has this much power over me, over my life. He's manipulative and I don't trust him."

"I don't trust him either," David agrees. "But I do know that he's not going to hurt you." He squeezes her shoulder. "Back in our world, I made several deals with him. And I never liked doing it, but sometimes he has something that you need."

"Really?" Emma questions.

"Really," David confirms. "He may not be exactly trustworthy, but he is powerful. And you do not want to be on his bad side."

"That's just it," Emma says. "I don't _like _that he's so powerful. Ever since I got back from the fairy tale world, I've realized just how much power he has over my life. He set up my future before I was even born. I feel like I'm just some pawn in his scheme, and I have no idea what the end game is."

David is quiet for a long time, and Emma worries that she has upset him. She's about to take it back when David says, "I've felt that way, too – like he created a life for me that wasn't my own. I found out about it when I was about your age, and I remember feeling the way you do, like you have no control." David pauses, but Emma remains silent, waiting for him to continue. "But you have to remember, you _do _have control. He may have created the game, but you're the one playing in it."

"But I'm not," Emma interrupts. "I feel like anything I do, it's because he knew I would do it all along. My choices aren't my own."

David shakes his head. "You can't think like that. You are who you are, and that man has _nothing _to do with it. Think about everything you've done. There's no way he could have predicted all of that. The future's a complicated puzzle, one vast unknown. Even if he could see the future, he can't see all of it. You are your own person. He didn't create you. Your mother and I did."

Emma smiles, although David's words remind her of what Mr. Gold said in his shop, just after she'd gotten back. He hadn't created her, that was true, but he'd taken advantage of what she was.

"I know it's hard to come to terms with," David says. "It took me years. But one day you'll realize you're more powerful than he could ever have imagined."

"What did he do to you?" Emma asks, curious. She knows so little of her father's story.

David is about to answer when Mary Margaret and Henry come home. He smiles at Emma, squeezes her shoulder one last time and says, "I'll tell you when you come back." He steps closer and whispers, "Because even though I can't see the future, I know that we will be together again."

* * *

**A/N:** I hope you enjoyed! I do plan on continuing, although I don't know when (probably not until the month-long break at the end of March). If you're interested in reading more, put the story on your follow list. I'd also love to hear your ideas for scenes, so if you have any, feel free to send them along. In the meantime, enjoy tonight's episode and please consider leaving me a review!


	3. Fatherly Love

**Disclaimer: **If you recognize it, it doesn't belong to me.

**A/N: **Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed the last set of vignettes. You guys are all awesome! I hope you enjoy this final set. All mistakes are mine, as this was not beta'd.

* * *

_i._

Emma's eyes snap open at the knock on the door. "Come in," she calls as she swings her legs over the side of the bed and sits up.

David opens the door, but doesn't enter. "Can I talk to you?"

"Okay…" Emma raises her eyebrows uncertainly.

"It's nothing bad," David assures her quickly. He hesitates for a second, and then fully enters the room and shuts the door behind him.

"Then why does the door have to be shut?"

David smiles, but it's an uneasy one. Emma shifts over on the bed to make space for him to sit down. He approaches her, but remains standing. She knows it's strange, but she suddenly feels like she's a teenager, and David has come to give her one of those big life talks. She can see that combination of hesitation and embarrassment all over his face.

"We don't have to have _the talk_, you know," Emma says, trying to lighten the mood. "I know all about the birds and the bees."

"The what?"

"The – never mind," Emma replies quickly. She supposes they never used such metaphors in fairy tale world.

"Look, Emma…" David shifts his weight, not quite meeting her eye. "Your mother and I – well, mostly I – but she, too, have been a little, um, worried about you."

"Okay…" Emma feels her stomach drop. He wants to talk to her about Neal. She's been wondering when this would come up, has been dreading having to explain this ever since she found Neal in Manhattan and he came back with them to Storybrooke. She doesn't want to explain, because she doesn't want to think about it, doesn't want to sort through her feelings about Neal and Tamara and his place in Henry's life. All at once she's aware of how little her parents really know about her life before Storybrooke – her time in jail, her brief stint as a thief. If she's being honest with herself, she can admit that she's ashamed. Her parents are noble, the fair and just rulers of their kingdom. And her past proves she's nothing like them.

"It's just that…" David's voice trails off and then he clears his throat. "What I mean is, how – how are you doing? You know, with Neal here. Because I – I know how hard it can be. Being in love with someone, but not being able to be with them-"

"I am _not_ in love with Neal," Emma interrupts him. But she wonders if he can hear that she's trying to convince herself as much as him.

"Okay," David relents. "Even if you're not now, there was a time when you cared deeply about each other. And now he's back in your life – suddenly, unexpectedly – and he's – well-"

"Rumpelstiltskin's son?" Emma suggests.

"That," David agrees, "and engaged." Emma opens her mouth to protest, but David hurriedly continues, "Look, I know that you say you're not in love with him anymore, and I believe you. But I always know that you've been through a lot in the past few days – seeing someone you probably thought you'd never see again; finding out that he's more than who you thought he was. And I just want to know if – that – you're okay."

Emma lets out a long breath she hadn't realized she was holding. David has come into her room to be her _father_.

She wants to say she's okay, that seeing Neal after so many years, finding out that he's Baelfire, is just water under the bridge. She wants to say she doesn't care that now her son thinks she's a liar, as bad as Regina, and that she knows he'll come around. But she can't say those things, because as soon as she opens her mouth to try, the words refuse to come and her eyes fill with tears.

"Emma?" David reaches out and places his hand on her knee. She refuses to look at him, because she doesn't want him to see how much this is affecting her. It's not just everything with Neal, but the fact that here, right now, is the first time she feels like she has truly connected to her father.

"I'll be okay," she finally manages. But she knows he's caught her use of future tense, has recognized that while she will eventually get past the shock and the confusion, right now she needs help.

"Then I'll be here as long as it takes."

Emma smiles softly and covers her father's hand with hers. This time, for the first time, she notices that they have the same fingers.

_ii._

"Everything go okay?" David asks Emma as he carries a sleeping Henry to his room.

"I think so," Emma replies quietly, trying not to wake her son. "Apparently Henry and August – Pinocchio – are friends now."

David nods absently as he sets Henry down. "And Neal?"

"What about him?" Emma asks.

"Is that – going okay, too?"

"It's fine." Emma shrugs. She's still replaying her last conversation with Neal in her head.

"Good. I'm glad." David smiles. "But just so you know, if things take a turn for the worse and you feel the need to punch him in the face, I'd be more than happy to oblige."

Emma laughs, but she knows he's not kidding.

_iii._

She's still in shock. She can't move, can't even process everything that happened to her in the past few hours. All she feels is empty, a sick feeling that leaves her numb inside. Her last words to Neal, and his last words to her, echo in her head.

"Emma?"

She looks up. David is standing in front of her, coat on and ready to go. "It's time," he says unnecessarily.

She knows what that means. Time to go pick Henry up from the park. Time to tell him what happened to his father. She promised him that she would never lie to him again, but now she's wishing she never made that promise. She can't bring herself to break her son's heart, doesn't know how to tell him what happened, when her own heart is still shattered into a million pieces on the floor.

"It's going to be okay," David says, but she's not sure he believes it either. "It's going to be hard, but Henry will understand. There's nothing you could have done."

"Yes, there is," Emma replies. "I _knew_ Tamara was up to something. I should have tried harder to prove it – I should have looked for more evidence. I shouldn't have given up just because Mary Margaret and Neal thought it was all wishful thinking."

"Emma," David murmurs. She hadn't noticed him moving closer to her, but now he's close enough to touch her shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

All she can do is shake her head. "But it feels like it was."

"It wasn't," David repeats. "You did everything you could to save him. And you didn't open that portal. You didn't make him fall through it. You didn't shoot him."

Emma knows his words are supposed to be comforting, but instead she finds herself blinking back tears. "What if he's -?" She can't even say it. "I mean, he was shot when he went through, he was bleeding. What if he – what if he doesn't-?"

"Shh," David says soothingly, squeezing her shoulder. "Don't think like that. You don't know where that portal went. Maybe it took him straight to a hospital."

Emma nods, but she doesn't really believe it. She's quiet for a long time while David sits down next to her. She leans into him, and he wraps his arm around her.

"I'm never going to see him again."

She knows that David won't lie to her. "You might not," he admits.

Emma swallows hard and then whispers, "But I told him that I loved him."

She feels David press his lips to her hair again, as he had done before. It's all it takes for the tears to start spilling.

"It's a good thing you're my daughter, then," David murmurs into her ear. "Because in this family, we always find the ones we love."

Not trusting herself to speak, Emma only nods and lets her father holds her as she cries.

* * *

**A/N:** As I said, I won't be writing any more Emma/David scenes for this vignette set, as the season is now over. However, I am getting ready to post a longer, multi-chapter story within the next few weeks. Stay tuned if you're interested! In the meantime, how about a nice review?


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